What’s The Worst Mistake New Freelancers Make?

If you’ve been freelancing for a while you probably already know the answer to this question:

What’s The Worst Mistake New Freelancers Make?

If you’re new to freelancing or thinking about getting started then keep reading because you will want to know the answer to this.  Believe me, it could save you a lot of hardship and sleepless nights.

Most freelancers start off using bidding websites such as Elance, Get A Freelancer, or Guru to name but a few.  When you log into these websites and find a job you want to bid on your have to include your price and the amount of time that it will take for you to complete the job.

I have underlined the last part of that paragraph on purpose because this is where you can make big mistakes. I’ve made them, as I’m sure many others have and it is because of this that I can share this knowledge with you.

When I started ghostwriting back in 2004 it was all new to me.  I worked in a hospital on the admin side of things so typing was part of my daily chores and my typing skills were second to none.  This was to be my advantage and of course my downfall.  I made quite a few mistakes when I started but the one that always stands out in my head is my lack of concept regarding time.

How long do you think it takes to type a 500 word article?

How long do you think it would take you to do a press release?

How long do you think it would take you to write 5 300 word blog posts?

Keep the answers written on a piece of paper beside you for a minute and when you get to the bottom of this post look at them again.

When I started I was so naive, I thought, 500 words, ah yes that will only take 20 minutes, I can easily do 10 of them in a couple of hours.  And so began my worst nightmare.  I placed a bid for 15 500 words articles @ $2 per 100 words (a beginners rate on Elance back then) and said I could have them completed within 24 hours.  Needless to say I got the job and a huge headache to boost.

I had 15 articles to type on health related subjects and I thought it was going to be easy money.  I sat down at my computer, microsoft word opened, google opened, and off I went.  I’d say it was probably about 10am and I was stoked.  I had estimated that by lunch time I would have more than half of them completed and by dinner time I would be $150 richer.  Not bad for a days work for a beginner.

How did it really go?

Well I started on the first article.  I can’t remember now what it was so I’m going to say it was about heart disease.  I opened google, typed in heart disease and began reading and taking notes.  I read through the websites of the first 10 google results, and took careful notes until I was ready to type my article.  I never looked at the time and just started typing up my article.  Once the article was finished it was then time to proof and edit.

One down and only 14 left I was on a roll or so I thought.  To my amazement when I looked at the clock it was already after 11am.  What I had estimated taking 20 minutes had actually taken over an hour and I had 14 more to do.

To cut a long story short it was well after 3am when I finished my 15 500 word articles.  Did I make the same mistake again?  No way…I learned a valuable lesson that day.

My advice to you, time yourself before you bid on jobs.  Before you jump in feet first it’s always a good idea to test the water.  You don’t want to freeze now do you.

Winning bids and getting paid for your writing is one thing, but sitting up till 3 and 4 in the morning is another.  Was my $150 worth it?  At the time no but looking back it was worth more than you could ever know.

I was lucky that my 500 word articles weren’t keyword articles or I might have been sitting there all night. I strongly advise that you take time out to assess your skills before you start freelancing.  Take my example above on heart disease, sit down and write a 500 word article.  Time yourself and see how long and how much work is really involved.  It is only then that you will really know.

If you want to practice keyword articles I do give a great example in my Ghostwriting Manual that you could try.

Now, take a look at the answers you wrote on your piece of paper.  Do they still seem realistic to you?

Until next time,

Keep writing.

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Tagged as: Bidding, Elance, Freelancer, ghostwriting mistakes